K.K. Sasidharan, J.

Introductory Note

1. Whether the legal representatives of a deceased workman are entitled to continue the legal proceedings initiated by him challenging the order of dismissal from service and the related order passed by the Appellate Authority under the Tamil Nadu Shops and Establishments Act, 1947, by filing an application for impleading them as parties is the core legal issue raised in this intra court appeal.

Brief Facts

The predecessor-in-interest of the respondents 1 to 3 was an employee of Bharat Overseas Bank Limited, which was subsequently merged with the Indian Overseas Bank. The employee was dismissed from service. The order was confirmed in appeal. Thereafter, the employee filed a statutory appeal before the Appellate Authority constituted under Section 41 of the Tamil Nadu Shops and Establishment Act, 1947. The appeal was dismissed by order dated 31 August 2004. The order was challenged by the employee before the Writ Court in W.P. No. 3738 of 2005. During the currency of the writ petition, the employee died. The legal representatives filed an application for impleading, which was allowed by the learned single Judge. Subsequently, the manageme